


Escapril

by doctorwhoover



Category: Original Work
Genre: Bad Poetry, Gen, Poetry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-01
Updated: 2020-04-30
Packaged: 2021-02-28 23:35:52
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 30
Words: 3,244
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23425624
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/doctorwhoover/pseuds/doctorwhoover
Summary: so this is just gonna be a collection of escapril prompts featuring me unable to poet
Comments: 25
Kudos: 2





	1. dawn

**Author's Note:**

> Ok so just to be clear, each chapter is completely unrelated, and im just gonna try and get into the swing of writing regularly. It's gonna be a bit of a mix of different styles, just to try and test new things, see what i like.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tw: mentions of suicide

She watches the dawn come from her window, as one by one the colours splash across the sky. 

She stands on her balcony, looking out on a world still asleep, a world that for once is perfectly still. A world that has taken and taken from her, without once giving something back.

There is nothing left for her here. Only pain and sorrow stands behind her, and she knows with a calm acceptance that no one will miss her. She is not right for this life full of machines, smoke and corruption. She wants to be free.

She contemplates the beauty of that moment just before the sun peeks out from behind the horizon, when the colours are at their most vivid and the sky is pure light. She doesn't wait for the sun, instead falling, falling to the ground far below her. It seems to receive her gently, the grass absorbing her body seconds after it touches the ground.

The sun rises on a slowly waking world, unchanged. It opens sleepy eyes, dragging people into jobs they hate, once again filling the sky with smoke and ash. 

A child cries out for his mother. He can't find her. He never will. He'll become just another product of pain and sorrow, until the cycle repeats itself, until he too will look out at the dawn from a balcony, unable to go on.

Dawn is just another cycle. It comes back every day, unchanged. 

However, everything else changes by the second. Each day is different, although starting in the same way. If there is one thing the girl wishes she had known, it would be that nothing is constant, and that things pass.


	2. growth/decay

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i had like zerooo inspo for this so i hope it's not too bad oof

It grows. With every breath, it is bigger, bigger, bigger.  
Bigger than a blade of grass, bigger than a daisy  
Bigger than a bush, bigger than a tree  
Bigger.  
Suddenly, it stops.  
It doesn't grow anymore.  
It loses colour, fades away,  
Shrivels, thins, weakens, shrinks.  
It is nothing but a husk, nothing but a shell.  
It is decay, it is rot. And why should that be bad?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ok not as bad as i thought it would be... guess i just had to really throw myself out there and just write
> 
> hope you guys enjoyed it!


	3. is anyone listening?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tw: suggestions of sexual abuse and rape

Is anyone listening, when she calls for help?

Do they hear her muffled screams, her sobs?

Does anyone notice when she comes home, dress torn and bloody?

Maybe someone out there was listening. maybe they heard her cry out for help, saw her stumble by in tears.

But they didn't do a thing.

Why do we live in a world

Where if you hear something, you choose to ignore it?

Why do we let these acts of violence pass us by

As if they mean nothing?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ok so this is a really important topic for me. I hate that we live in a world where 1 in 5 women have been raped, and many more have been sexually harassed or otherwise. 
> 
> And even more importantly, women are too afraid to talk about their experiences because we live in a society where many people believe rape to be taboo and shameful.
> 
> if you ever experience this, please don't hesitate to text me on tumblr at @betchtastic if you need someone to talk to, or to share your feelings.


	4. earthly pleasures!

The bright blue of the sky

The coolness of the rain as the clouds cry

A wisp of cloud in the corner of your eye

These are our earthly pleasures.

A breath of wind at the end of a hot day

The sun slipping behind the horizon, leaving its last ray

A voice in your heart, telling you to _stay_

These are our earthly pleasures.

Take care of them, for soon they will be gone

Stolen by time, forgotten, unable to live on

In a world where earthly pleasures have been replaced 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ok, ok, this is the weakest rhyme scheme everrrr (i tried) pls don't hate
> 
> i actually love a repeating phrase in a poem so there ya go


	5. the view from up here

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so this isn't really poetry, it's prose i guess?? unless prose IS poetry... idk it's complicated haha.
> 
> anyway, it's a little different than what i have so far. hope you guys enjoy it!
> 
> EDIT: for some reason the end notes from the first chapter keep cropping up, so just ignore them.

"Have you seen the view from up here?" he calls out to them.

They look up at him and shake their head.

"Here, let me help you up," he says, and lifts them onto the roof, grunting at the weight.

They look down at the world spread around them, like a blanket. It is beautiful.

They can see all the way to the ocean, if they squint. Up here, they can look at the rolling hills around them, endless rows of vineyards planted upon them. They are standing on the only building for miles, and the only sign of human existence is the man standing next to them.

They feel as if they are among the clouds, higher than anything else. Suddenly everything that was once big is now small, insignificant. All their troubles blow away with the wind, and they feel lighter than ever. The future is but a distant memory as they breathe in deeply the now, the present.

They are several feet above the ground, yet they feel the most grounded that they have in ages. They have been but a wisp of cloud, floating through life, yet now they feel more solid, more secure than they ever have down below.


	6. obsession

never did victory taste so sweet  
like honey on her tongue

she craved it more than anything  
would have given up everything to have it  
had already given so much  
it was never enough

more

more

_more_

when she looked in the mirror  
she barely even recognised herself  
hollow cheeks, sunken eyes, sallow skin

she had her victory now  
not a soul would ever forget that she did  
but at what cost?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> blergh i don't even know what this is??? not feeling it AT ALL today


	7. chemical reaction

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i was procrastinating this??? so much???? but i finally did it yay :))))

A chemical reaction cannot be stopped  
Much like a beating heart  
Stopping it condones grave consequences.

A freight train, hurtling headfirst off a cliff  
Or a bomb, released from the womb of a plane  
An injured ship, sinking into the depths of blue.

Some things cannot be stopped  
And it is better not to try.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ok i actually like where this went! and you say, "but bubblegumbetch, what do you mean, don't you know what you want to write about before actually writing?" and the answer is no, i have zero idea what I'm about to write about when i start writing!!! (possibly the reason why my poetry qualifies as Shit Poetry™)


	8. hometown

Cool ocean waters and hot summer sun  
Indistinguishable days, feeling like a single one  
Rolling green hills and faint twinkling lights  
Oh how i long to be back, to feel _right_

Crisp evening breezes and grass tickling my thighs  
Iridescent beetle wings, reflecting the night skies  
Roaring waves and eternal peace  
Our longing for home shall never cease

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is basically just me being nostalgic about spending the summer with my grandparents in Italy. i have only fond memories of that place and for me it's a paradise. Actually, the first letter of each verse spells out the name of the tiny town i'm talking about.


	9. natural light

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i've gotten lazier and lazier as the days go by so excuse the late publishing :)

Your armour is thick  
Your walls high  
But I see your cracks  
I see your light, shining through

It glimmers dully  
It is almost spent  
But I will stay by your side  
I see your light, shining through

You are different now  
You are the same, yet changed  
But I know you're still there  
I see your light, shining through

Your light brightens  
Your face is once again yours  
And I am glad, so glad, that  
I saw your light, shining through


	10. parasitic

A dandelion is a parasite  
Is it not?  
It feeds on other plants  
It takes and it takes until there is nothing left to give  
And once it has finished? The other plant is long dead.

They say you're a parasite  
They say you only think for yourself  
They say you don't care for others  
And yet

Even dandelions are pretty  
They can be used to cook, to make something _good_.  
They are resilient and never give up.

If that is the case,  
Then I believe you are not all that you seem  
Maybe this is how you learned to survive  
But your need for survival is over  
And now you just need to learn to _live_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> would ya look at me, posting before midnight. incredible.


	11. heaven/hell

When you look up  
Far, far up  
Past the clouds and the sky  
What do you see?

_Nothing, silly, I don't have telescope eyes!_

When you look down  
Far, far down  
Past the soil and the rocks  
What do you see?

_You know that humans don't have X-Ray vision!_

Do you see a sanctuary among the clouds or just some pretty constellations?  
Do you see a burning prison or just molten rock?

_Are you feeling alright? Do I need to fetch you a doctor?_

The answer is the unknown.  
No matter which way you look, there is only unknown.  
So many things waiting to be discovered.

_Tell me what's wrong, I just need to know if you're ok._

Some find it daunting, terrifying.  
But me?  
I see the beauty in ignorance  
And I am ready for whatever comes next.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> what's this? bubblegumbetch posting while it's still daytime? 
> 
> i've actually been wanting to try this style of dialogue in poetry for a while, i'm loving how it turned out.


	12. submerged in water

A child sinks down to their ocean bed.  
He did not last very long.

They watch him, and  
Their heart aches for this child  
Who is too young to bear the stain of society

The memory of hundreds of deaths lies deep within them  
Shipwrecks, submarine wrecks, plane wrecks, even an entire city  
And yet  
This particular child is the one that breaks them.

There is nothing they can do to save him.  
Even up there, on the surface, they sense that he will not be missed.

All they can do, is welcome him gently  
Give him a last embrace  
Before he reaches his watery grave.


	13. the city

The sky is beautiful.  
She thinks she has never seen it so vivid  
When once it was hazy and tinged with grey  
Now it is a blue pure and clear.

She is woken up by the sing-song of the birds.  
No more rude awakenings at 4:30 AM  
By the rumbling trains outside her window  
Only the sweet chirping of a robin.

The night is full of stars.  
They twinkle and shine like nothing she has ever seen  
Before, all she could see was the faint shape of the moon  
Now the edges are sharp, surrounded by a million burning stars.

The city is healing, she thinks  
From a wound she didn't know it had.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> don't really like this one very much eek  
> but at least i wrote it what can i say


	14. pink, like your brain

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tw: inference of cancer

Scans, scans, so many scans  
Of lungs and heart and kidneys and brain  
But all they can see are the pink dots  
Marking those treacherous cells  
The cells that will kill them.

So many dots  
Everywhere  
Pink   
Like their brain.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> idek at this point. this was all i could think of.


	15. Euphoria

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> does this even make sense??? I'm???

_What do you feel?_

They ask  
Over and over again

_What do you feel?_

She doesn't know what she feels  
She's not used to this kind of emotion

_What do you feel?_

The question is unclear  
She doesn't understand what they want from her

_What do you feel?_

What do they care, what she feels?  
It's not like her answer will change anything

_What do you feel?_

She just wants some peace  
To be alone and think about what she _feels_

Euphoria.


	16. bearing fruit

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I WROTE A SONNET ARE Y'ALL PROUD  
> it doesn't have a rhyme scheme, but get this: ALL THE LINES HAVE THE SAME AMOUNT OF SYLLABLES

The sun sets, casting its final  
Rays upon the sleepy valley  
Where rows upon rows of vines  
Bear their sweet, cultivated fruit.

Every day is unique  
Yet identical to the rest  
A paradise where a sort of  
Monotony reigns, glorious.

The inhabitants live a life of  
Utter peace and prosperity  
Leaving a legacy of vines.

They may not have much, but they have  
All they need to live a life unburdened  
By the cruel vices of men.


	17. grief

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tw: grief, mentions of death

A gaping chasm  
Stretches across his chest  
He can't see across  
And it scares him.

He has lived with it for years  
It has become a part of him  
He forgets what it felt like  
Before.

Before all this  
Before his world was torn apart  
Before the person who shared a piece of his soul  
Died.

He sometimes wishes he could forget  
And sometimes wishes he could remember  
Their scent, the way they  
Moved and talked.

Everyone tells him to  
_Move on, move on_  
But he doesn't want to  
He wants to hold onto them for  
As long as possible  
Before his memory fails  
And they truly leave him,  
Falling into the chasm,  
Forgotten, just as he will one day be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i actually kinda like this one


	18. how did the sky look?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so i wanted to describe the sky to a blind person, but i feel like it only really worked for the bit about sunrise oop

_How does the sky look?_  
She asks suddenly.  
_I always read about how beautiful it is.  
Describe it to me._  
So you do.

During the day, it is  
Pure as can be. Sometimes there are  
Fluffy sheep wandering across it  
Which darken  
And produce the rain you love so much.

During the night, there is  
An infinite darkness -  
One that is comforting  
So unlike the darkness of fear.  
It is illuminated by the moon and her  
Millions of handmaidens, spread all over the sky.

But it is in the morning  
That the sky is truly breathtaking  
As if welcoming the day  
In the most grandiose way possible.

A symphony of colours  
Different instruments coming together  
To create an aria of life  
Starting slowly until it reaches a crescendo  
As the sun makes its entrance.


	19. it's tough to be a bug

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i don't even know what this is

Ants work all day  
A full, 12-hour shift  
Finding food, making paths, building a home

Only for it to all come crashing down   
When a child starts playing  
With the deadly lens of a magnifying glass

There are people  
Who will belittle you  
Because you are insignificant  
Or so they say

But every little thing is important  
Everything has its place  
No matter how small

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the inspo goes down by the day lmao


	20. moon

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> a day late and v terribly written, but here it is

She shines  
Brighter than any mortal creation  
Her light is infinite

She watches over  
All her children  
As they glow around her

She comforts  
Every creature  
From the wolf that comes out to howl  
To the firefly struggling to lift up

She protects  
All the innocent  
Those who attack them  
Will never escape her wrath

Her existence  
Is monumental  
Yet she will always be there  
For any who need her


	21. hands, wrists, teeth

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i actually quite like this one, even though its pretty short

The hands of a farmer  
So calloused and reddened

The wrists of a child  
Unmarred by the scars life gives them

The teeth of a noble   
Whiter than the moon

What do all these things have in common?  
They are all human  
They all make mistakes  
And each is perfect in its own way


	22. into the woods

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> only *checks watch* 11 hours and 42 minutes late

Into the woods she goes  
Alone  
Always alone  
Only she knows where to go  
To find the sweetest blossoms  
The fattest prey  
The most potent poisons  
Only she knows where to hide  
When they chase after her  
Flaming torches in one hand  
Pitchforks in the other

This is the cost  
Of going into the woods empty-handed  
And returning with bounty  
Unfound  
By the blind eyes of men  
This is the cost  
Of helping others  
In ways untraditional and strange  
Which always seem to work

Witchcraft, they say  
Work of the devil, they say  
They are just scared of the fact  
That she has more knowledge than they ever will


	23. focus on the texture

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> inside out anyone?

You run your hand   
Along the stacks and stacks and stacks  
Of memories

_This one._

It feels jagged, sharp  
A drop of blood beads on your finger  
Rolling in tandem with  
The tears on your cheeks

You tuck it away  
Out of sight

_Maybe this one?_

It feels slimy and sticky  
A wave of nausea rolls through you   
Cresting at the tip of your tongue  
As you struggle to contain your revulsion

You throw it away from you  
As far as you can

_Please let this be the one_

Instantly you are warmed to your very core  
Beneath your fingertips  
It feels  
Soft and fluffy and fully-formed

The others are forgotten once more  
And you bask in the gentle heat of a day long past.


	24. black hole

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so i'm experimenting with a new format and i actually quite like it.
> 
> (not gonna comment on the fact that i'm a whole ass day late)

Closer  
And  
Closer  
It drags you in  
As you try  
Desperately   
To free yourself

All you can see  
Is bottomless  
Black  
All you can hear  
Is the sound   
Of your  
Eardrums bursting  
All that escapes your mouth  
Are choked  
Gasps of air

Your friends are  
Long gone  
There's no one left  
To save you  
As you are sucked in  
Never to be seen  
Again


	25. extinction

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> wtf it's almost the end of april how did time go so fast

One  
By  
One  
They are wiped out  
Like words from a slate

Whole species  
Are disappearing each day  
Gone  
Just like that  
From the face of the earth  
Never to return

You sit there  
Pouting at your screen  
_Aw, poor pandas!_  
And then you go right back  
To chopping down the trees  
Which are vital for them to live

You stand back  
While your peers choke the seas  
With filth  
And "pity" the turtles

You are to blame  
For this extinction  
For this mass murdering  
We are all to blame  
For not taking action  
And not hearing  
The desperate cries for help  
From the very planet we live on


	26. serpentine

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i guess i took this quite literally but here you go
> 
> edit: so apparently ao3 doesn't allow indents??1? so you'll have to imagine that each line is perfectly indented

The damp leaves  
Rustle under its belly.  
It is condemned  
To a lifetime  
Of inferiority  
Of being less  
Of being constantly  
Below everything else.  
Dignity has long since  
Exited its thoughts  
It is insignificant  
A pest  
Something to  
Scare off the little children  
That stray too far  
Into the jungle.  
It looks with envy  
At the glorious limbs  
Of the monkeys  
And the tigers.  
It looks with envy  
At the magnificent heights  
Which the birds attain  
And imagines a world   
Where it might see more   
Than just damp leaves   
Under its belly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sssssss


	27. fight or flight

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> is "to flight" grammatically correct?

**To fight or to flight?**

_The world needs to know my pain  
The world needs to know what he has done to me  
The world needs to know  
That there are monsters living among us_

She wants to fight  
For all that she has suffered  
For all the injustices life has hurled at her  
For all those girls who couldn't

**To fight or to flight?**

_He will find a way to hurt me  
He will never let me go in peace  
He will find a new victim  
Whose soul he can slowly murder_

She needs to flight  
Because she knows he will never stop  
Because she knows he will retaliate  
Because she knows she won't survive a fight

**To fight or to flight?**

_I will fight  
Until my last breath  
If that is what it takes  
To be rid of this creature who lives off pain  
And desperation _

__

_I will fight  
To be rid of this stain upon humanity  
So that no girl must suffer at his hands  
The way I did_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> soooo... hope you liked it!


	28. hope as a weapon

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> basically the prompt was _ as a weapon so i chose hope (just to clarify)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so i realised that most of my poems are just frantic scribblings at the last minute, so here is one that i tried to actually go over and improve a bit and collect my thoughts before posting.

He feeds on hope, uses it as a weapon  
He distills it in the heart of his people  
As one would an expensive wine  
He is drunk on its power  
He cultivates and encourages it  
Until the people are rife with it  
Rife with hope

For when one has hope in their heart  
Nothing will stop them  
From believing in it with all that they are  
And using it as fuel  
To move forward when they can't anymore

This is when he acts  
When one will do anything  
Just to hold onto that hope  
By entertaining false promises  
And empty reassurances   
They give him everything  
Hoping, always hoping  
For a better world

They hope,   
And hope and hope  
And are so lost in their dreams  
That they don't notice  
The atrocities he commits  
The cruelties and malices

They don't notice  
That instead of moving closer to a perfect utopia   
Their reality is the definition of dystopia

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm considering watching all 2 hours of crazy rich asians even tho it's 10pm and i have school tomorrow... hmmm


	29. monochrome

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so i wrote two (2) poems today (!!) so i hope they're somewhat decent

**Monochrome** 1

His eyes, oh his eyes  
Were a deep, pure green, like the  
Pines of my childhood

**Monochrome 2**

I used to see the world in technicolour  
A myriad of the brightest hues imaginable  
So pure and undiluted  
That my eyes would hurt if I stared too long

I used to see the world in technicolour  
Until you came along  
You changed my whole worldview  
You took away the hundreds of vibrant colours which kept me afloat  
And left me with  
One

I used to see the world in technicolour  
But now all I see is mistrust  
Betrayals and cruelties hiding beneath colourful costumes  
They surround me, choking me, covering my mouth  
As I gasp for the golden air which I am used to

I used to see the world in technicolour  
Until you decided to strand me  
In a sea of violet violence and lilac lies  
A sky of plum-coloured pain above me

Until you decided it would be fun  
To watch me suffer and see my soul fade  
In this monochromatic prison  
So different to my technicolour world

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> also- only one more prompt left aaaahhhh i don't want this to end


	30. dusk

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I DONT WANT THIS TO ENDDD BUT IT HAS

Forever is the sun setting across the globe  
Forever is the ocean stretching infinitely across the horizon  
Forever is the wind chasing the clouds in before a storm  
Forever is the night sky looking down upon us

Forever are the warm reds and oranges which stretch across the skyline  
Forever are the waves cresting with white foam  
Forever are the streaks of lightning which reach out from the heavens  
Forever are the stars above your pretty little head

_Nothing is forever_

Look around you  
Everything with beauty is forever  
Everything born of nature is forever  
Everything you love is forever 

All you need to do  
Is close your eyes  
And see the sights  
Printed into your brain - forever

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so.. this has been a whole journey for me honestly. my writing has improved so much in this past month, and i've got to discover some unique and utterly beautiful viewpoints from new people. i know this sounds cheesy, but i've actually discovered a lot about myself and the way i see the things around me, because if you think about it, in everyday life you don't actually get the chance to just pour out your visions in a way that is uniquely beautiful. 
> 
> i hope that you have found some hidden shred of quality somewhere in these poems, and if anyone actually manages to read this far without vomiting, thank you!

**Author's Note:**

> this is kind of a dark theme, and if anyone feels this way, please get help. There are national hotlines you can call, or if you just need someone to talk to, i'll be happy to help in any way. 
> 
> don't just keep all your feelings to yourself if you can, because it's really important to talk to someone if you're feeling suicidal.


End file.
